This invention relates generally to an accessory element for holding a workpiece between the movable jaws of a vice used in machine shop equipment, such as machines for milling, boring, grinding and cutting the workpiece.
Typical machine shop equipment of the foregoing type, as for example, a milling machine, includes a turret in which a plurality of cutting tools and the like are mounted, the turret being turned to bring a selected one of the tools to bear on the workpiece which is to be machined. The workpiece to be machined is securely held in place between the jaws of a vice, which, in turn, is held in place on the bed of the milling machine beneath the cutting tool, and the bed is moved with respect to the cutting tool, generally back and forth in a horizontal plane while the tool is rotated about a vertical axis so that the workpiece can be brought into contact with the tool as may be appropriate for the particular machining operation being carried out.
Conventional vices used for holding the workpiece include a pair of jaws that are movable in a horizontal direction toward and away from one another, the jaws having opposed, vertical work engaging surfaces so that during such horizontal movement of the jaws toward one another a workpiece can be grasped and firmly held between the jaws. While this type of vice is satisfactory for many cutting operations, it offers only limited flexibility for positioning the workpiece with respect to the cutting or grinding tool and therefore some desired cutting operations cannot be practically carried out. For example, where it is desired to form a beveled edge at one end of a flat piece of metal, this generally cannot be done with a typical milling machine of the aforesaid type because the flat workpiece can only be supported in a vertical disposition between the vertical work engaging surfaces of the vice jaws, and therefore the cutting tool cannot be brought to bear against the end of the workpiece at the necessary angle to form the desired beveled edge.
To overcome this limitation, vices have been constructed with conventional spaced, parallel jaws that move toward and away from one another, and these jaws are also mounted on an arcuately-shaped support that permits selected arcuate movement of the entire vice so that the parallel work engaging surfaces of the jaws, and the workpiece held therebetween, can be disposed at selected angles with respect to the cutting tool. While this type of vice construction permits a much wider range of cutting operation, including the forming of a beveled edge as discussed above, it will be appreciated that the costs of providing a vice having the capability of compound jaw movement can be considerable, particularly when the vice must be large enough to support relatively heavy workpieces and when the arcuate support for the vice must be constructed at close tolerances to provide a relatively exact angle of support for the workpiece. Additionally, vices having this compound movement of the jaws may not be available for all types of milling machines.
By virtue of the present invention, a simple, inexpensive accessory is provided for use with virtually any type of shop machines having a vice for holding the workpiece, whereby the workpiece can be held at a desired angle with respect to the tool of the machine.